Show respect
“So to sum it up,” Aurora says briskly once she’s done with her beer. “It’s not exactly an issue, yeah? I thought we should meet, seeing as you probably want to know there’s a temporary curse put on werewolves in that part of town, but it really is just an unfortunate escalation of our little… misunderstanding with the witches living next door.”
Remus listens, his expression blank. The bar is getting louder and hotter – they met before the rush hour, but it’s getting there. He’d much rather do this in a tea shop, but Aurora is a particularly stubborn pack leader and adjusting to her small needs makes it easier for him to later execute his own, much bigger demands. So here he is, sipping an average tea which wasn’t even on the menu of the establishment.
“If you want to bring this to the Ministry and have them take care of it, that’s… well, that’s fine by me,” Aurora continues. “But I think that’s going to make it all even more stupid and bothersome, eh? So I’d say – leave it to me. I can deal with it.”
“You can break the curse yourself?” Remus questions patiently, his voice polite while his gaze remains… focused. He secretly enjoys taking the time to make the other person realise their inadequacy all on their own.
Aurora grins, as always quite immune to his silent authority. “As a matter of fact, I might! That’s why I chose this place. There’s this little devil and a cursebreaker that appears here frequently. He surely will help me out for the right price.” She turns to look around the room, clearly searching for the familiar face.
Well, then. Remus feels a twinge of curiosity and a pang of something else. “What is his name?”
“Black,” she shoots back confidently. As expected. “Funny fella. A wild one, too, if you ask me. A perfect match, really, when you need something done quickly and quietly. Oi!” She waves at the bartender before Remus can offer any comment. “Do you know if Black’s here already?”
The guy on the other side of the bar counter looks up at them while preparing someone’s drink. “The cursebreaker? Young one?!” he asks, raising his voice because of the buzz around them.
“Yeah!”
He smiles in a way that makes Remus annoyed. “He’s not here, no!” He places the drink in front of the patron and shifts closer to them. He leans in over the bar, still smiling. “I see why you’d ask that, though. He used to be here every other day. A troublemaker, that one, but a fun one. If you know what I mean, yeah?”
The bartender looks to be a similar age to Remus and Sirius. He’s conventionally attractive, yes, and surrounded by the practiced charm – the kind you can usually find in people who earn tips. None of that bothers Remus. It’s the way her eyes shine with memories when she talks about Sirisu, that is the part that he could do without. Then again, he’s not surprised. Black was and still is a party person. A free spirit. A curious bastard. Remus knew that already.
Meanwhile, Aurora scrunches her nose, disappointed. “Do you know where I can find him these days, then?”
The bartender focuses on the patrons to their right for a second, then reaches for a glass to pour a beer. “Can’t be sure.” His attention shifts back to Remus and Aurora. “He just disappeared one day. Left quite a debt behind, too. I used to bump into him at the club down the road, haven’t seen him there in a while, either.”
“Is that so…” Remus murmurs and it’s not exactly a question. He’s very much aware where Sirius spends his evenings these days.
“Yeah.” The oblivious bartender places the beer in front of the patron. “Rumor has it somebody finally locked him down.” He grins again. “Hard to believe, if you ask me.”
“Nevermind,” Aurora dismisses, still thinking only about the curse. “I’ll find him later.”
Remus quietly analyses how he’d like for this to play out. “You can leave that mess to me.” He finally decides. “I’ll deal with it.”
She raises her eyebrows at him. “Yeah? You sure?”
“Yes,” he confirms in a polite tone.
Aurora grins. “All right, ace! I appreciate it.”
Remus waits until she’s done with downing her beer before he speaks again. “Aurora?”
She throws the money onto the bar, ready to leave. “Mhm?”
“This is not a favour. It’s a warning.”
Lupin actually encourages werewolves to form packs – it’s healthier for everyone – and he definitely doesn't enjoy dismantling one, but sometimes that is the safest thing to do. When a bunch of wolves with wrong ideas, or simply the wrong attitude, get together, they often become too careless or too stupid to just let them be. Remus prefers to prevent problems rather than fix them.
Fear flashes in Aurora’s eyes, but she quickly blinks it away and leans even more into her bold personality. “Okay, sure,” she says and probably hopes to sound dismissive or unbothered, but it comes out mostly as if she’s distracted with something else. “Thanks anyway.”
Remus stays to finish his tea, so he watches her leave. He doesn’t particularly enjoy her company, but he does like her, in his own way. So he wishes her the best – truly. In the grand scheme of things that just doesn’t really mean much, now does it?
The bartender comes over to collect the money Aurora left behind and Remus takes the opportunity to pay for his own beverage. He places coins on the counter. It’s unnecessarily high stack.
“What’s that for?” the guy asks, eyeing the small fortune.
Remus drinks the last sip of the tea and places the cup down gently. “That’s to pay off Black’s debt,” he explains the money, calm as always.
Surprise appears on the bartender's face, but it’s soon replaced with curiosity. He looks up at Lupin, this time studying him more carefully, with a new, not at all hidden interest.
“Are you sure?” he asks finally, but already reaches for the money. “People are going to talk,” he warns.
“Only if they find out I've done this,” Remus points out, maintaining eye contact easily, unbothered by the questions and suspicions that are written clearly all over the stranger’s face.
Bartender frowns at first, but then a small smile starts dancing on his lips. “Do you want them to find out?”
Remus shrugs. “I don't mind either way,” he says and almost means it.
* * *
The music is too loud.
It’s James’ birthday, so what he wants, he gets and unfortunately he wants to go out. Remus was happy to hear their destination is a bar, not a club, but that joy dies quickly. It’s karaoke night – the owner vanished half of the tables to make room for random, brave performers and once the singing gets old, it becomes a dance floor for all.
Remus isn’t allergic to fun, he just doesn’t have a very strong social battery and loud crowds drain it even faster. He’s not used to them – turned at a very young age, during a time of heightened hatred for werewolves, the loner trait was basically forced onto him. The times have changed and he feels a strong sense of belonging here in London now, surrounded by his pack and friends, but it might be, as they say, too little, too late. He’s already been built on the foundation of solitude and he’ll always need it, even if only for a moment.
He’s lucky to be surrounded by people who understand that. James, Lily, Longbottoms, Marlene, Dorcas and Sirius are somewhere in the sweaty crowd, dancing their worries away with others, while Remus sits in the booth, making sure nobody will steal their seats. Maybe he will dance at some point – Lily has a talent for dragging him onto the dancefloor – but right now he is studying a letter from the Ministry. His owl brought it minutes before they left the manor and he has a busy day tomorrow, so he decided to take it with him to the bar.
A young man appears in the corner of his eye. He stops at Remus’ table and places a cup of steaming tea in front of him. Blond hair, thin waist, round face. “I know who you are,” the stranger says with a boyish smile that makes him appear much younger than he actually is.
Remus looks at the tea. “Clearly,” he comments with a hint of amusement and nods in a silent thank you, even though the gesture is a bit odd.
The guy gracefully slides into the booth and sits next to him. Remus has seen him an hour ago behind the bar, pouring a beer for James. Either his shift has ended or he's taking a break.
“My friend works in the Black Cat,” the young man continues. “He told me you paid off Sirius' debt there.”
“Does Sirius owe this place money, too?” Lupin asks curiously. As usual, unless a situation gives him a clear reason to do otherwise, he approaches it with polite interests. He doesn’t ask the stranger to leave, but he does shift discreetly to put more space between them.
The guy smiles again and the way he maintains eye contact is intense, but far from threatening. “No.” His laugh is almost a giggle. “I just… Well, mostly, I just wanted to say hello. Lots of wizards talk about the Werewolf Peacekeeper, but this might be the first time I’ve heard something… personal about you,” he admits. “I’m Noah, by the way.”
Noah is confident, Remus will give him that. “Who says it was personal, not just business?” This could be a rare opportunity to hear how he’s viewed in certain circles.
“I’m actually hoping it's not personal. That would explain why Black's dancing… like he always is.” Noah glances at the dance floor. “You've seen him, right?” he jokes, but it’s clear the sting behind the words is carefully designed. The word ‘unfaithful’ is hanging between them, unspoken but suggested.
Remus smiles politely. “I’m very familiar with the way he moves,” he informs without turning his gaze to the crowd. It makes the comment sound… almost dirty. It could be argued that’s on purpose.
The guy’s grin becomes provocative and he leans in slightly, encouraged. “Oh, you really can be fun, can't you? Who would have thought…”
This time, Remus stays silent, but he looks relaxed doing it. He’s not annoyed nor uncomfortable. He just… sits there patiently, while the untouched tea is getting cold.
Noah clears his throat and his face becomes more serious – worried, even, though there is something fabricated about it. “I actually used to know Black quite well, you know? He worked here for a while, part time. He is… He’s good at convincing others to deal with his problems for him.” Noah shrugs innocently, as if this wasn't a rude thing to say. “He attracts, uses and forgets. I've seen him do it before. I guess I'm just trying to say I’d hate to see him do it to you, too.”
There’s a lot of interesting information hiding in this exchange and not necessarily in the actual words, which are obviously biased. Remus will have to analyze and catalogue it all later. For now… Well, right now, they are being interrupted.
“Moony, you have to…” Sirius almost bumps into the table, all sweaty and breathless from dancing. His hands are raised, because he’s gathering his hair into the bun to cool off the neck and when he notices Remus has company in the booth, they stay up there frozen for a moment. “What the fuck.” He says finally in a dramatically different tone.
Noah's smile turns fake. “Hello, Sirius.”
Remus is much better at observing than dancing. He looks between the pair curiously, remaining quiet. Sirius' mouth twitches with annoyance, and displeasure shines clearly in his eyes. He wipes the sweat off his forehead and rests both hands on his hips, shifting his gaze onto Remus without acknowledging Noah’s greeting.
“The hell is he doing in our booth, Moony?”
Remus shrugs. “I was only reading this,” he slightly lifts the letter, which is still in his hand.
Sirius turns back to the blonde. “Let me guess, then. You’ve crawled over here, uninvited, yeah?”
Noah keeps wearing his innocent mask, but it is very noticeable it’s a mask. “I simply came to introduce myself.”
“Sure you have,” Sirius mocks and slides into the booth, taking the seat opposite of Remus and Noah. He watches them both briefly and then his gaze slides down, to the cup of tea which is standing in a slightly odd place – between the two men. Sirius’ lips twitch at first, but soon they curve into a dangerous smile. “You bought him tea…?” he mocks, looking right at Noah. “Oh, that’s just pathetic.” He shakes his head with pity and leans back comfortably, clearly not even for a second considering Noah to be a threat. It’s a very creative way to insult someone.
“Sirius,” Remus says quietly. Just that, nothing else, but the message is very clear – behave, please.
That finally makes Black’s attention shift back to Remus. “Yeah, fuck off,” he dismisses, but there’s something fond about his tone. “Why are you entertaining this?” he asks then, meaning Noah’s presence.
“I’m literally just sitting here,” Remus declares, partly to himself, because he’s a little bit astonished how easily he got maneuvered into this conflict.
Noah smells the opportunity immediately. “What, is he not allowed to make new friends?” he looks at Sirius challengingly.
Sirius huffs. “Oh, please. As if you aren’t hoping he’ll bend you over some piece of furniture at the end of the night.”
Remus sighs quietly and sends another disapproving look Black’s way, disappointed with his manners.
“Who says he won't?” Noah shots back, clearly deciding his innocent act has already been ruined. He's also running out of smart lines.
Well, now Remus is disappointed with them both. “I won’t,” he supplies calmly.
Sirius smirks, spreading his legs wider for no reason. He’s a picture of confidence. Both him and Remus are, actually, though of very different kinds. There’s a prominent pause in conversation between the three. Eventually, Sirius sighs theatrically, immune to Noah's glare and shifts forward. He places his tattooed forearm on the table and reaches for the cup of tea with the other hand. He takes a sip lazily, enjoying the audacity.
“So, Noah,” he begins slowly after cutting the cup down. “Other than the fact that you still work here and you’re still single, how is life?”
Noah presses his lips together with the first wave of anger and embarrassment, then quickly glances at Remus to see if the man maybe is planning to interject
Sirius huffs again, amused. “Don’t look at him,” he advises. “He won’t help you.”
“Fuck you, Black,” Noah hisses and the mask shatters, reveling envy, though right now it's almost completely covered by humiliation. He flares at Sirius, then turns to Remus. “He's a waste of your time. You'll see.”
With that, Noah leaves. Sirius downs the rest of the tea.
Remus sends him an extremely unimpressed look. “That was cruel of you,” he announces calmly, watching Sirius carefully. The hair close to his neck is damp with sweat and his pale skin is slightly flushed from dancing.
“No, it was brave of you to let him sit here this long,” Sirius shots back and a note of annoyance slithers into his tone. It can be taxing to uphold Lupin's standards. Sometimes he'd like for them to simply be assholes together. “You shouldn't look lonely out here in the first place.”
Remus’ eyes do that thing when they appear slightly darker for no particular reason and it feels like the gaze can suddenly burn through skin. It’s all just for a brief moment, though, then it’s gone and he’s back to being polite. “Says the man who already flirted with half of the wizards here tonight.”
“That's different.” Sirius argues and he seems to be slowly melting into the seat. “Dancing doesn't count.”
“Debatable.”
Black grins and shifts to fix his hair again. “Are you jealous?” he asks conversationally.
“No.” Remus says truthfully, calm as always. “Do you want me to be jealous?”
Sirius hums quietly and his face turns more serious as he actually considers the question. “I'll get back to you on that,” he says eventually.
* * *
“I’m kind of used to guys being obsessed with me, you know?” Sirius says thoughtfully two days later, watching as Remus turns the page in a book. “Adrenaline is better than love, as they say.”
“Nobody says that,” Remus supplies politely, not looking up from the text.
“Sure.” Sirius stretches on the couch which became a permanent addition in the library once he officially moved into the Wolf Manor. “It’s a lot of fun, I’ve gotta admit. Possessiveness, arguments, cheating, make-up sex. Heightened emotions...”
“Sounds messy.”
Sirius laughs brightly. “Come on, Moony! All that excitement – that is fun! You know I’m making sense.”
Remus knows a lot of things, actually. He knows the types of guys Sirius used to party with. He knows the type of mischief Sirius gets himself into. He knows Sirius is not used to feeling secure and that trusting someone still catches him by surprise. But that’s how they are right now, whether Black likes it or not – secure and trusting. No matter how many people touch Sirius on the dancefloor and no matter how many people try to charm Remus at the table, both of them will find it, most and foremost, amusing.
It’s a really good joke – the assumption that at this point they’d go for anybody but each other.
Remus is aware of all this, but if Sirius needs more time to process it, that’s fine by him. “I think you’re mostly making noise right now,” he responds finally.
Sirius chuckles again. “That book is only helping you pretend you’re not focusing on me right now. Which, you are. You’ve read five pages in the amount of time that it usually takes you to read fifteen.”
“I’d say it proves that you’re interrupting me.”
“It proves you like it when I’m interrupting you, which is why you’re stubbornly staring at the text you have no intention of fully understanding right now.”
“That’s a long sentence, love.”
Sirius sits up to grin at him. “Fuck off.”
Remus slowly closes the book and puts it onto the stand next to the armchair. “All right. Go ahead. What’s this about?”
Sirius hums. “Aren’t you afraid this will get… boring?” he asks finally, crossing his legs on the couch.
“No.” Remus says simply.
It’s just one word, but somehow, it makes Sirius shiver.
“Any other doubts?” Remus inquires, his face blank.
It was all sort of a joke just a moment ago, but the atmosphere shifted and now Sirius is slightly worried he might have said too much (or chose words that were too stupid). He doesn’t open his mouth this time, but slowly shakes his head instead.
Remus doesn’t break eye contact once. “Good,” he praises and it sounds less innocent than it should.
Sirius swallows, suddenly very much aware of every part of his own body, for no particular reason. He watches as Remus gets up and starts walking to him calmly. Always, always so bloody calm. There’s something overpowering about it. Still waters run deep and all.
Sirius shivers again once Remus leans down, standing right in front of him, and places his fingers on the side of his neck. It’s a bit odd – he uses only two, not the entire palm, but that doesn’t exactly matter right now, when Sirius’ cheeks are already getting hot and his heart starts beating slightly faster, and…
“Here’s the excitement,” Remus says and suddenly it’s very obvious he’s measuring Sirius’ quickening pulse with his fingers. He smiles at Sirius – kind and triumphant at the same time – and moves his hand away. “We’ll be just fine,” he assures.
With that, Remus leaves the library. Sirius gapes. That little move was both rude and the hottest fucking thing. Maybe he truly doesn’t need the mess anymore. Order is clearly doing it for him.